Cover image via @pocket.manor.
Question: How did you insure your tiny house?
To insure, or not to insure. That is the question! With any traditional home, you probably wouldn't even consider going insurance-less, but somehow, tiny houses continue to fall in a gray area that makes people wonder whether or not it is worth it to insure.
A few years ago, the options to insure a tiny house were quite limited as underwriters had no idea how to classify them—are they homes, are they RV's? Nowadays, with tiny houses increasing in popularity, agencies and underwriters have become more in tune with how to value this kind of property and there are many more options in the market.
So the question is no longer were you able to but rather did you choose to?
Answers:
Jess & Todd | tinyhouseofny.com
We did not insure ours and we’re all ears if others have! We’ve debated between insuring and not, and came down on the side of not, thinking it wasn’t cost effective. We hope to not regret this decision!
Jana & Micah | instagram.com/tinyhousefamily
We are insured through Darrell Grenz at http://www.insuremytinyhome.com/. It’s not too expensive, and approval was easy. Since we rent ours on Airbnb now, we are also insured for personal liability for $1M, which covers anything that happens on the property as well as in the tiny house. Lofts can be tricky, and it’s important we are covered for accidentals.
Lauren & Christian | adventureabode.blogspot.com
We were able to insure our Tiny House with Foremost Insurance Group. Since our house is RVIA certified, it made this process quite a bit easier.
Joshua & Shelley | tinyhousebasics.com
Insuring our DIY tiny house was a very easy process for us. We have had a long-standing relationship with a major insurance company and they have insured many of our other projects as well like our off-road camp trailer that we built based off a 1950’s Military trailer, so they didn't bat an eye when it came to insuring our tiny house.
We called our agent and told him we wanted to insure our tiny house that was built on a trailer—they just asked us for the vin number and some pictures. We sent him 70 pictures of inside and outside of our house and also told them what we wanted to insure it for value-wise. They sent this info to the underwriters for approval and it was good to go!
We also added a secondary renter’s insurance on the land for which the tiny house was parked on to cover other items that renter’s insurance normally covers. We have had this insurance for over 4+ years now. There have also been many other insurance companies that have popped up that insure tiny houses that friends and customers of ours have used. We have thought about pursuing one of these mainly for the fact that we like to be the guinea pigs, so to speak, before we can recommend products or services to customers.
Sam & Tim | tiffanythetinyhome.com
Yes, we are insured! We have a whole blog post about this that actually includes a photo of our real policy. It was definitely tough finding appropriate coverage for our home because it’s such a new area, but we ended up finding a provider that we love. We both feel so much better having coverage just in case.
Our policy covers robbery, liability for when people tour our home, and even theft of our home. You can laugh, but this has happened! Not to us, thankfully, although we’d be covered if it did. :) Also, among the highlights are a tracking device within our home, and third-party coverage if someone else is towing our home to an event. We’re pretty psyched about having insurance.
Dolly | tinymissdollyonwheels.com
I insured TinyMissDollyOnWheels through Australia’s leading caravan and RV insurance specialist, CIL. They have a comprehensive Tiny House on Wheels insurance policy that includes contents too.
I heard about it on Facebook, searched the website and contacted them when my tiny house was being built. They sent me a quote and I contacted them again once I had a location for the tiny house. The whole thing was through phone and email. Insurance is for peace of mind and we cross our fingers that we never have to have a reason to claim.
Alexis & Brian | instagram.com/living_the_tiny_dream
We are insured! Our builders helped us to find someone who would insure a tiny home that was not RVIA certified. We ended up going with Darrell Grenz at http://www.insuremytinyhome.com/ after a recommendation, and have been happy so far! We debated whether or not we needed insurance at all, but ultimately, it was worth the peace of mind for us.
Melissa & Scott | instagram.com/thatgrackle
We insured our house through MAC Insurance. The process was super easy and the rates are reasonable. You can customize the coverage to suit your needs and they do not require an RV certification. Hopefully we never need the insurance but it does give us peace of mind knowing that we have it, just in case!
Bela & Spencer | tinymigrations.com
We did insure...it was a piece of cake to get the policy and not expensive. There are a lot of providers at this point.
The only thing we weren’t able to get is coverage against forest fires. Kind of annoying, since we’re in a relatively risky area for that, but our house doesn’t pull air in for the A/C, so I don’t think we’re too vulnerable. All said, we’ve never made a claim on our insurance and I don’t know anyone who has. Having an insurance policy and actually making a claim are two very different animals.
Would you insure your tiny house?
Now that you've heard different opinions from the #DreamTeam, which way are you leaning? Ultimately, we think it comes down to two things—is your tiny house worth a significant amount of money to you and how much do you value peace of mind?
If you spent a significant amount of your savings to either pay for your tiny house in full or take out a loan that you couldn't afford to pay off right now, then chances are that you won't have enough money to completely replace your tiny house in the case of an emergency in the worst case scenario. If you value peace of mind, then insurance can protect your downside.
However, if the value of your tiny house is synonymous with what you value a car, for example, and you would be able to replace your housing in the worst case scenario, then maybe paying an insurance premium may not be worth it for you.
Other factors such as how often you'll be moving it, being located in areas prone to wildfires, and potential theft are all important factors that can sway your decision.
At the end of the day, no one thinks insurance was fully worth it until something happens—and until now, we haven't heard of anyone having to make a claim yet (fingers crossed)!
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Also in #AskTheDreamTeam
+Hi There!
My name is Alan—founder at Dream Big Live Tiny Co! A few years ago, I quit my consulting job to pursue a life full of adventure. After traveling around the world for a year, I sold most of my stuff and moved into an 160-sqft tiny house. Now I spend most of my time showcasing incredible people living with less in pursuit of more freedom, as well as incredible tiny houses around the world!